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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cap · charge · court · date · bat · tube · prune · mark

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cap — a lid
  4. charge — a price
  5. prune — to trim
  6. charge — electricity
  7. court — of law
  8. tube — the underground
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. charge — in control
  12. cap — a hat
  13. cap — of ice
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mark — a trace
  16. court — for sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — the fruit
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. mark — a grade
  23. court — of a king
  24. tube — a container

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com